the_debt_of_time

and afraid. Sirius could not reconcile the expression with the Dark Mark on his forearm.
He moved to attack and only stopped when he saw the smallest hint of a line on Regulus's
neck and suddenly he could hear Mia's voice in his head.
"I healed the wound on his neck, told him to find some Dittany so it wouldn't scar. Yes, Sirius, I
healed your brother so he wouldn't scar. You might have an idea as to how I feel about scars."
Why had Mia healed Regulus?
Her brief moment of mercy toward his younger brother caused Sirius to doubt
himself.
"Get away from me, or I'll kill you," he said in a low, threatening voice.
Regulus widened his stare in shock that Sirius was backing down. Instead of moving
in for the attack like Sirius expected, Regulus stood back and lowered his wand. "I'll prove
myself. I will. In the meantime... tell Evans that I'm sorry," he said and then Disapparated
in a cloud of black smoke.
"Fuck!" Sirius screamed in frustration and then turned back to the fight. "Peter!
Mary!" He glanced over his shoulder to see Lily and Alice wildly throwing hexes at Malfoy
and Bellatrix as well as three more Death Eaters that had appeared around the wall. He did
not know where Frank and James were, and just as he was about to go looking for his best
friend, he heard Peter screaming out for him.
"Padfoot! Help me!"
Sirius turned back around and noticed his friend poking his head out from behind
the door of a small room. The wall had been blasted to hell, and Sirius rushed through,
ducking behind it as he dodged a curse that flew over his head. When he got a good look
at Peter and Mary, he felt the blood drain from his face.
Peter looked ready to vomit as he cradled Mary in his arms, tears pouring down his
dirty face. She was bleeding profusely, her skin ashen. Her body was shaking, her eyes
fluttering as she drifted in and out of consciousness. Still, she seemed to be struggling
against Peter's hold, likely wanting to get back into the fight. Mary always had been a fighter.
Her wand was near Peter's foot, snapped half. Sirius wondered if she had fallen on it when
whatever had blasted the wall to bits.
"Padfoot. H-Help. T-They hit her w-with.. ." Peter stuttered as he looked down
at the girl in his arms. "S-She's in shock."